February 27, 2006	TRANSITIONS Volume 1, Number 3
PNG: LAND OF THE UNEXPECTED Fast Facts September 16^th, 1975 PNG obtained their independence 574 airports in the country. Only 21 of which are paved The government is a constitutional monarchy with parliamentary democracy. Literacy rate is estimated at 66%. A look at the currency Front of new 100 Kina bill Back of the new 100 Kina bill JUST FOR FUN: CIA World Factbook: Contains answers to some of the most asked questions about Papua New Guinea. For example: What is the climate? What is the average life expectancy? What is the economy like? http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/ Click on World Factbook Choose Papua New Guinea from list Craig and Jeri Ford 6920 Richardson Rd Houston, TX 77069 Phone (281) 440-5130 E-mail eddieford@hotmail.com	Over the last month Jeri, Hannah, and I have been enjoying our time in Houston. The Champions congregation has been so good to us. We have been spending lots of time with the members sharing meals with them. In addition to building these relationships we have been working on taking care of everything necessary for our move. This time has provided a wonderful opportunity to catch up on old friendships and develop new ones. We feel fortunate to be here in Houston. PNG News Jeri and I are getting more and more anxious to get to New Guinea. All the necessary pieces of the puzzle are falling into place. We have started purchasing items needed for the move. We have bought plane tickets. We have sent our passports to Washington to have our work visa stamp added to our passport. We have scheduled for our personal possessions to be shipped. We have all our medical shots. The last BIG job we have is to pack and ship all of our personal possessions. By the end of March our things need to be packed and on their way to North Carolina. Lord willing we will be reunited with our things around the middle of August. A view of the landscape around Alotau Our Current Financial Need It is such a blessing to be able to say that God continues to amaze us with how he works everything out according to his plan. We have now raised all of our financial support! Both our one-time and monthly needs have been fulfilled. It is amazing how the people of God continue to answer his call. By the way: If your congregation has committed to send funds, please plan on sending them (as our total includes those funds). We are extremely grateful for everyone’s generous support. Prayer Requests o Safe and productive travels before we leave the States o Wisdom in decision making associated with the move o Stress and emotions related to an international family move o Current missionaries in Alotau (Williams and Reese families) o Receptivity Keeping in Touch o Visit our blog: pngfords.blogspot.com Our blog will focus more on some of the personal joys, challenges, and humorous events regarding our lives leading up to and in Alotau. o Visit the church website: www.championschurch.org From the website you can access past issues of our newsletter as well as the current issue. There is also a link to our blog in case you forget. Travel Plans: Ø Jan – March 21 - Houston, Texas Ø March 21 - April 7 – CO / WY/ NE Ø April 7-22 – Ontario, Canada Ø April 22-May 1 – back to Houston Ø May 2-7 - Memphis, TN (Craig’s graduation) DEPART FOR ALOTAU May 7th, 2006 A closer look at the terrain around Alotau